Haunted
by BryonieAnne
Summary: Songfic to Haunted by Taylor Swift. Cloud and Zack's final moments together, what is going through Cloud's mind. Cloud/Zack, reviews are lovely :


_You and I walk a fragile line  
>I have known it all this time<br>but I never thought I'd live to see it break_

Cloud Strife let his head rest on Zack Fair's shoulder as the older boy pulled him along the dusty gravel path. He was still feeling the effects of the intensive Mako poisoning, but was able to stand with help. His mind was still blurred and foggy, so forming coherent thoughts took intense focus. Cloud let his eyes crinkle as he thought deeply about the few words he would mutter aloud.

"Zack," he said quietly, "where are we?"

Zack leaned Cloud's fragile body against a thick tree just off the path. He then placed himself directly in the young boy's view and smiled broadly. "On the way to Midgar, Cloudy!" he grinned, playfully messing up the boy's hair. "There's this girl I know there, she'll fix you up right. Then we'll go be mercenaries, you and me. There'll be no job we don't take, as long as we're fighting together." He whispered the last bit which caused Cloud's cheeks to flush slightly.

Cloud tried to force his mouth to smile, and he knew he succeeded when Zack's face lit up like the sun. "Listen, there's some monsters up ahead, so I'll leave you here, and come pick you up once they're dealt with, okay? Don't make a sound." Zack touched Cloud's cheek before dashing away.

_It's getting dark and it's all too quiet  
>and I can't trust anything now<br>and it's coming over you like it's all a big mistake_

Cloud was exhausted from the strain of standing against the tree so he let his body slowly slide down the trunk until he was firmly planted on the ground. He rested his head against the tree and waited for his guardian to return. He could hear Zack's grunts and the monster's growls a ways away from him and he tried to block it out. A couple monsters were no match for Zack Fair, SOLDIER First Class.

His mind started to get fuzzy again, so Cloud closed his eyes and clenched his hands. As hard as he tried to fight the overwhelming haze, it beat him before long and his mind started to travel far away.

In his mind he was back in Nibelheim, a few days before all hell broke loose. He remembered lying on the hard hotel bed, waiting for Zack to return from a meeting with Sephiroth.

The mighty Sephiroth. Cloud had always looked up to him, yet lately he had changed his idol. The hero he wanted to be most like was his best friend Zack Fair. There was nothing Zack wouldn't face, and no matter what life threw at him, he would always smile.

The First Class walked through the door and Cloud sat up, smiling at him as always. He flopped down on the bed next to Cloud and crossed his hands behind his head.

"Cloud, don't you love being in the country? I thought I'd be able to get over it, after living in Midgar so long; but being here really makes me miss home."

Cloud nodded in agreement, and Zack beamed up at him. "Maybe one day I'll take you to Gongaga."

Cloud's mind began to shift again and the young boy ached for it not to change. He grasped at the memory, his favorite memory, and felt his mind slowly bring it back.

"Listen, Cloud. There's… something I wanted to do." Zack was sitting directly in front of him on the bed, his brilliant eyes locked on Cloud's own.

"Anything," Cloud heard himself say, and even watching it in his memories he was captivated by the warmth of Zack's smile and the fire in his eyes. He watched as Zack moved closer to Cloud, stopping only when his face was almost brushing Cloud's. He hesitated there for an agonizing moment, and Cloud had been unable to help himself. He pressed his lips softly against Zack's, and his whole body had melted. Cloud's already weak body felt even limper when he remembered his first kiss with Zack. It had been soft and sweet, magical and exciting. After that moment, each boy was like a drug to the other, and they felt they couldn't survive without small kisses or embraces.

Still, after all this time they'd spent together, Cloud got shivers when Zack touched him, and his face would heat up whenever Zack's lips were near.

When Cloud forced his eyes open again, the soft light of day had faded into the harsh dark of night. Night used to be a happy time for Cloud; he would sneak into Zack's hotel room and steal kisses in the dark, before creeping to his own room when daylight arrived. But nighttime now meant monsters, and Zack always had to be on his guard. At night, the only touch Zack could afford Cloud was a small brush of his fingers across the smaller boy's cheek, or a sweet peck on his lips.

Cloud felt his body begin to shiver with cold, and only when he finally stopped shaking did he realize that the night was deathly quiet.

_Oh, I'm holding my breath  
>won't lose you again<br>something's made your eyes go cold_

Cloud tried to stand, he needed to find Zack! But his legs gave out and he fell hard against the damp cold ground. His lips opened as he longed to cry out but his voice failed him. It was at night when Cloud was most tired, and when his body would give up on him.

He gave up on trying to stand, and instead tried to listen for the sounds of battle, or any sound that his best friend was close.

There was nothing. The silence was so loud that Cloud couldn't bear it; he needed to make some sort of noise, to counteract the ache of the quiet. He slowly forced his arm towards his pocket, and after intense struggling, his fingers made contact with the small circular bell Zack had given him.

"I know you can't speak right now," Zack had told him when he'd changed the boy's clothes. "But if you can, try and ring this bell. When I hear it, I'll come running."

_Come on, come on, don't leave me like this  
>I thought I had you figured out<br>something's gone terribly wrong  
>you're all I wanted<em>

His body was so exhausted that extracting the bell from his pocket proved harder than fighting a battle. When his hand was finally free of the fabric, the cold air stung his skin but he would not falter. He used all the energy he had left to slowly rock his hand back and forth on the ground, causing a low jingle to break the silence.

_Come on, come on, don't leave me like this  
>I thought I had you figured out<br>can't breathe whenever you're gone  
>can't turn back now, I'm haunted<em>

Cloud rang the bell as much as he could before his body failed him and the bell slipped out of his hand. Had Zack not heard it? Cloud's heart ached as the air was void of the footsteps of his love returning to him. Had something happened to Zack? Cloud was sure he'd never been gone this long before. His breathing started to falter and before long his lungs burned for the air they couldn't seem to get. Cloud's eyes felt heavy and the night suddenly became the blackest Cloud had ever seen it. Then, he passed out.

_Stood there and watched you walk away  
>from everything we had<br>but I still mean every word I said to you_

When Cloud finally awoke, he opened his eyes a sliver. He was almost scared to see what was around him, unsure of what he'd do if Zack still wasn't there. He heard the familiar crunch of work boots on the dirt path and let his head fall sideways so he could glance at the SOLDIER.

Zack was pacing on the path, but not as nimbly as he usually would. He was limping slightly, and as Cloud gained enough strength to fully open his eyes, he realized Zack was hurt.

One of his arms was bloody and Zack had ripped part of his shirt to make a makeshift bandage. His hair was caked in blood, and there was a large rip in the leg of his pants. Cloud tried to make his way over to him, but was unable to move, and he resorted to grunting angrily.

Zack was in front of Cloud in a flash, rubbing his cheek and cooing at him. "Hey Cloudy, how are you feeling?"

Cloud opened his mouth and tried to speak again but the sound died out.

"You're hurt," he choked out after a few tries.

"Just a few scrapes," Zack smiled weakly, "you're worse off than me. I'm sorry about last night. I must have blacked out after the fight. A girl found me and took me in, but as soon as I woke up I came to you."

Cloud nodded feebly.

"She said she's got some potions," he continued, "and I asked if she could bring them to you. Maybe they could help. She'll be here soon, so I have to go keep watch, okay?"

He kissed Cloud's lips softly; his hand gripping Cloud's as tight as possible.

"I won't be gone for long, I promise." Zack backed away from Cloud and turned to leave.

Cloud mustered all his strength and muttered, "I love you, Zack."

The raven-haired SOLDIER stopped in his tracks. He hesitated before rushing back towards Cloud, planting small kisses all over the blonde's face.

"I love you, too, Cloud. I'll never leave you. As long as I'm living, I will protect you."

_He will try to take away my pain  
>and he just might make me smile<br>but the whole time I'm wishing he was you instead_

The girl who had saved Zack was a nuisance at the best of times and a downright pain at the worst. She was always talking, and Cloud needed rest. She was constantly shoving potions down his throat, so fast that he choked a few times. She would ask him questions, and would pout when Cloud was unable to answer.

She had mentioned a few times how cute Cloud was, and had held his hand many times while she administered potions. Cloud didn't care enough to waste his strength pulling away, but he often wished Zack was around to chase her away.

After a while it became obvious that the potions weren't helping Cloud's Mako poisoning at all and the girl decided to run home to grab some more remedies. Cloud moaned at the thought but enjoyed his small time alone.

His alone time was cut short, however, but Zack running towards Cloud, breathing heavily.

"We need to go. Now."

_Oh, I'm holding my breath  
>won't see you again<br>something keeps me holding on to nothing_

Zack had picked Cloud up and was now running full speed in the opposite direction from which he'd come. Cloud had no idea what Zack had seen, but knew enough about him to know that it wasn't good.

Cloud's stomach tossed and turned as Zack flew down hills and past fences, he knew something was very wrong.

"Shinra army. Tons of them." Zack panted, more to himself than to Cloud. "Need to put you down. Have to fight them."

_Come on, come on, don't leave me like this  
>I thought I had you figured out<br>something's gone terribly wrong  
>you're all I wanted<em>

Zack found a large rock and placed Cloud carefully behind it. "Don't make a single sound, Cloud, do you hear me? And don't come looking for me, no matter what happens."

Zack placed a wet kiss on his lips before gripping his sword and running away.

Cloud felt the tears running down his cheeks, hot as fire, yet cold as ice. He longed to fight next to Zack, but he knew it was no use. Standing was impossible, how could he even think of fighting?

Still, he felt useless lying behind that rock, listening to Zack fight for his life.

_Come on, come on, don't leave me like this  
>I thought I had you figured out<br>can't breathe whenever you're gone  
>can't turn back now, I'm haunted<em>

Cloud's heart broke a little more with every gunshot and sword clash he heard. He could hear Zack's exhausted groans, but the SOLDIER kept fighting, and Cloud knew he would die before he stopped.

Zack didn't just fight for himself. He fought for Cloud, for Tifa, for the people of Midgar, and for the people of Gaia. He fought for the people in the lifestream, and for the people not born yet. He fought for everyone, yet everyone had abandoned him.

When Cloud heard the fighting stop, and when he heard the army retreat, he made a promise to Zack that he would not abandon him.

So with every ounce of strength he had in his useless, weak body, he dragged himself out from behind the rock that had hidden him so well. He dragged his body across the damp ground, and didn't even flinch when rain began to fall like daggers, every drop piercing his skin and driving into his heart. He dragged himself up beside the limp body of Zack Fair.

_I know, I know, I just know  
>You're not gone<br>You can't be gone  
>No<em>

"Zack," he whispered, and his heart wrenched into a thousand pieces. He knelt on his knees beside his best friend, and leaned over his face to protect him from the rain. "Zack, don't leave me."

"Cloud, I failed," Zack's reply was as shattered and broken as his body. "I couldn't protect you the way I should have."

Cloud pressed his lips to Zack's one last time, and the two men cried together. Cloud clutched Zack as close to his body as he could, his tears falling faster than the rain ever could. "I love you," he kept whispering, over and over against the boy's lips. Zack echoed every word, trying to calm him.

"Listen, Cloud." Zack pushed Cloud's body away from him only a little. "Take… take my Buster Sword. I need you… I need you to be my living legacy. Promise me you'll live your life for both of us."

Cloud nodded and hugged Zack as close as he could, only letting go when he felt the SOLDIER's body go limp and lifeless in his arms. He pulled away and muttered quietly "I promise, Zack."

_Come on, come on, don't leave me like this  
>I thought I had you figured out<br>something's gone terribly wrong  
>won't finish what you started<em>

Cloud dragged Zack's lifeless body towards the rock that had saved his own life. He hid Zack behind it, and kissed his forehead. He seemed to gain strength from Zack's body and he stood up, the buster sword gleaming in his hands.

_Come on, come on, don't leave me like this  
>I thought I had you figured out<br>can't breathe whenever you're gone  
>can't turn back, I'm haunted<em>

Cloud walked to the edge of the cliff that overlooked Midgar. _We were so close, Zack. _

His body had regained its strength but Cloud noticed his mind get fuzzy again, and he fell to his knees, gripping his head in his hands.

The gears of his mind were whirring and spinning, and Cloud watched as his foggy, poisoned mind made up stories of himself. He watched as every memory he had of Zack got replaced by one of himself. He watched the black spiky hair vanish, only to return as blond. He watched as his mind slowly erased Zack Fair from his memories, and with one single sentence, they were gone.

"I am your living legacy."

_You and I walk a fragile line  
>I have known it all this time<br>Never ever thought I'd see it break  
>Never thought I'd see it<em>

Cloud Strife got up off the soiled ground of the cliff that overlooked Midgar. He slowly made his way towards the plated city and as he entered one of the slums a young boy ran up to him.

"Who are you, mister?"

"I'm Cloud Strife," the blond said triumphantly, "SOLDIER First Class."

And in his mind, he was.

* * *

><p><em><strong>So what do you think? This is my first ZackCloud and I'm really proud of it. I know this song is about a breakup, but I tend to try and look at songs in a different way. I wondered, could the song stay the same if the lover had died instead of left? I hope I did an okay job! I love reviews :D the song is Haunted by Taylor Swift.**_

_**-Bryonie.**_


End file.
